What is the maximum surface area for each folding step on the two folding steps?

• A. 25 square inches
• B. 40 square inches
• C. 30 square inches
• D. 35 square inches

Answer: (D)

When you fold a sheet twice, you end up with three surface sections (three steps). The total surface area available to be distributed across those steps is fixed. To maximize how large a single folding step can be, you distribute the area as evenly as possible among the three steps, because any imbalance would shrink one of the steps while keeping the total the same.

Therefore, the maximum surface area per folding step is one third of the total surface area of the sheet. If the problem’s data imply a total of 105 square inches, dividing by 3 gives 35 square inches per step, which is the maximum for each folding step.

So the answer reflects taking one third of the total area, as that arrangement yields the largest possible equal share for each step.